about

Joy Division were in existence between
1978 and 1980. They released four singles, three EP's (including
compilations with other artists), and three full length albums –
"Unknown Pleasures" (#71, 1979), "Closer" (#6, 1980) and the compilation
"Still" (#5, 1981). Their best known song, "Love Will Tear Us Apart",
reached number 13 in the pop charts during summer 1980: it has since
become a 20th century classic.

Three young men from Salford and Macclesfield,
Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Ian Curtis – all of whom had seen the Sex
Pistols play the Lesser Free Trade Hall in summer 1976 – formed a
group. Immersing themselves in Manchester's Punk scene, they tried out
different drummers and names – at first, Warsaw – and met their future
collaborators. At the time Martin Hannett was arranging gigs for local
bands as part of Music Force, and he took Warsaw onto his books. During
June 1977, Warsaw played several dates at the Squat and Rafters: the
resident DJ at Rafters was Rob Gretton, who had begun managing several
local bands.

From the start, Warsaw set out to write
their own songs. Their initial efforts were crude but enthusiastic, and
did not remain in their set long enough to be officially released. As
they practised they quickly began to move away from basic punk to
something more sophisticated. Prompted by Ian, the band's musical
influences and ambitions inclined more towards Iggy Pop, Kraftwerk, the
Velvet Underground, and David Bowie's "Low" and "Heroes" than
mainstream rock. Untutored but hard working, the group began to find
space in their sound – first heard on "No Love Lost" from their late
1977 recordings at Pennine Sound Studio in Oldham.

The group released their EP, "Ideal for Living" on their own Enigma label

By that time, they had settled on Stephen
Morris (also from Macclesfield) as their drummer. With the finalised
line-up they had played the Last Night of the Electric Circus as Warsaw
and were recorded for the Virgin live album "Short Circuit". In January
1978, the group changed their name to Joy Division. In June, they played
the first of several dates at the Factory at the PSV Club in Hulme, run
by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus. That same month, the group released
their EP, "Ideal for Living" on their own Enigma label: four songs –
including "No Love Lost" – that were marred by poor sound quality.

Ian Curtis interview, 1978

Soon after this release, Rob Gretton approached the
group and became their manager: his first act was to repress "Ideal for
Living" on 12" vinyl – for better sound – and to buy back from RCA
Records the eleven songs that they had recorded at Arrow Studios in May
1978. In September, Joy Division got their first TV appearance,
performing "Shadowplay" on Granada Television's Granada Reports: the
visual backdrop included negative footage of cars and buildings from a
report about the CIA, enhancing the group's obsession with William
Burroughs' concept of Control and their inherent spatial qualities.

'To the centre of the city where all roads meet
waiting for you': from this time onwards, Joy Division seemed to capture
the post industrial space of Manchester – a city in steep decline
during the mid 1970's. Joy Division were futurist – in the sense that
they were alert to new technology wherever they heard or encountered it –
and deeply emotional. An avid reader, Ian Curtis took from his
fascination with science fiction – William Burroughs and J.G.Ballard –
and Russian authors like Gogol and Dostoyevsky – to write lyrics that
were both literary and emotional.

In October 1978, Joy Division recorded two tracks for
the projected first release on Factory Records – run by Tony Wilson,
Alan Erasmus and Rob Gretton. It was the first time that they had been
in the studio with Martin Hannett, and he added a technological gloss to
their two tracks, "Digital" and "Glass": 'the Factory Sampler was the
first thing I did with them,' he said in 1989. 'I think I'd had a new
AMS delay line for about two weeks. It was called Digital, it was heaven
sent'. "A Factory Sample" was well-reviewed, and Joy Division became
better known outside Manchester.

At the end of January 1979, they recorded their first
John Peel session: four tracks including "She's Lost Control" that
would become one of the most requested ever. In March, they went to Eden
Studios in London to record with producer Martin Rushent as the first
act of a potential deal with Genetic Records through Warner Brothers:
this fell through when Rob Gretton decided to remain independent and
based in Manchester. Any future Joy Division material would therefore be
released through Factory Records.

She's Lost Control – Live from Bowden Vale , Youth Club, Altrincham, 1979

Joy Division did not play many shows in
early 1979, as the group were dealing with the implications of Ian
Curtis' epilepsy – which had manifested with a severe attack in December
1978 – and were recording what would be their first fully realised
album. One show that they did play was the 14th March date at Bowdon
Vale Youth Club, three songs of which were filmed by Malcolm Whitehead –
the earliest Joy Division live footage to exist. In April 1979 they
recorded sixteen songs at Strawberry Studios with Martin Hannett: ten of
these were released as the "Unknown Pleasures" album in July 1979.

Transmission [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

"Unknown Pleasures" announced Joy
Division as a major force in British music: the album was extremely well
reviewed and sold very well in the independent charts. The group
recorded a second appearance on Granada Television ("She's Lost
Control") and began to play more dates during the summer: several in
London, including the Electric Ballroom and the Nashville, the Futurama
Festival in Leeds, and the Leigh Festival in Lancashire. In mid
September, the group performed two songs live on the BBC2 youth
programme "Something Else" – "She's Lost Control" and "Transmission" –
while Tony Wilson and Stephen Morris were interviewed.

"Unknown Pleasures" announced Joy Division as a major force in British music

In October, Joy Division were added to
Buzzcocks' autumn tour – a total of 27 dates around England, Wales and
Scotland. The members of the group quit their jobs and became
professional musicians. On the 16th of October, they played a one off
date as part of an arts festival at Plan K in Brussels, which also
included William Burroughs and Cabaret Voltaire. Michel Isbeque shot
most of the set – during which they debuted "Love Will Tear Us Apart" –
on video. On the two Manchester Apollo shows on the 27th and 28th of
October, Richard Boon videod the group – the basis for the Ikon video
release "Here Are The Young Men".

Joy Division released their first stand-alone single, the audience favourite Transmission"

Three weeks later, Joy Division released
their first stand-alone single, the audience favourite "Transmission".
In December the group performed their second John Peel session, which
included "Love Will Tear Us Apart" and "Sound of Music". In the new
year, the group set out on a series of European shows: they had already
played in Brussels (Plan K) and in Paris (Les Bains Douches on 18
December 1979, released on CD in 2001), but this was their first foreign
tour, taking in ten dates in Holland, Belgium and Germany. Four songs
from the Effenar, Eindhoven date were filmed in Super 8, and were
included in "Here Are The Young Men".

Atmosphere [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

Joy Division kept on recording during this
period: in October and November, they had recorded two songs for the
stand-alone Sordide Sentimental "Licht und Blindheit" release – two of
their best loved songs, "Atmosphere" and "Dead Souls" – and in January
they made their first attempt at what was already thought of as their
sure-fire hit, "Love Will Tear Us Apart", at Pennine Studios in Oldham.
This session also saw the completion of live favourites "These Days" and
"Sound of Music". The group were not convinced about this first version
and rerecorded the song at Strawberry Studios in March 1980.

After two successful London shows at the
University of London Union (released as the bonus disc of the 2007
reissue of"Closer") and at the Lyceum, Joy Division spent two weeks in
March recording twelve tracks for their next album. These showcased the
group's experimentation with synthesisers and their leanings towards
contemporary dance rhythms and instrumentation. During the sessions,
Jean Pierre Turmel's Sordide Sentimentale released "Atmosphere" and
"Dead Souls" on a limited edition (1578) seven inch with a lavish
package, including Turmel's essay 'Licht und Blindheit'.

With the completion of the "Closer"
sessions, Joy Division played several dates in London at the beginning
of April, but there were concerns about Ian Curtis' health. At the
Moonlight, he suffered an epileptic attack onstage. A few days later, he
made a suicide attempt and while recovering tried to perform at the 8th
April Derby Hall show in Bury – which ended in a riot when he was
unable to complete the show. Joy Division would only play three more
shows: the last was at High Hall, Birmingham University, which was
recorded for future use, and eventually appeared on "Still".

Love Will Tear Us Apart [OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO]

At the end of April, a promotional video
for "Love Will Tear Us Apart" was shot by Stuart Orme in the group's
rehearsal space at T.J.Davidson's. Joy Division also rehearsed two new
songs, "Ceremony" and "In A Lonely Place". As the group were preparing
for their first US tour, Ian Curtis committed suicide on the morning of
the 18th of May, bringing Joy Division's active life to a close. In
June, Factory released both the "Komakino" flex (three songs from the
"Closer" sessions) and the "Love Will Tear Us Apart" single – which went
to #13 in the pop charts. Shortly afterwards "Closer"was released and
went to #6 in the album charts.

As the group were preparing for their
first US tour, Ian Curtis committed suicide

After a few weeks, the three remaining
members of Joy Division decided to regroup under a different name, New
Order. Factory continued to release Joy Division records – including the
September 1980 12" of the re-recorded "She's Lost Control" and the 1981
outtakes album, "Still". Interest in the group was reawakened by the
1987 issue of "Substance", which collected all Joy Division's non-album
releases, and the reissue of "Atmosphere" with Anton Corbijn's iconic
promo video. In 1997, London Records issued the "Heart and Soul" box
set, which included all Joy Division's released studio recordings plus a
disc of outtakes and live disc.

During the 21st century, Joy Division's reputation has grown

During the 21st century, Joy Division's
reputation has grown. They have been the subject of several books,
including Deborah Curtis' "Touching From A Distance", Peter Hook's
"Unknown Pleasures", and Bernard Sumner's "Chapter and Verse". They have
been depicted in three major feature films: "Twenty Four Hour Party
People" (Michael Winterbotham, 2002), "Control" (Anton Corbijn, 2007)
and "Joy Division" (Grant Gee, 2007).

Joy Division are now regarded as a keynote group from their time and place. Their intense fusion of music, words and performance, iconic sleeves by Peter Saville, Situationist-style promotion by Tony Wilson, passionate management by Rob Gretton and ground-breaking productions of Martin Hannett, conveying an authenticity and intensity that spans the generations. This site is an entry point into the Joy Division experience: this is the way, step inside.